The European Commission has put together a series of measures that would help Europe fight its corner in the electric vehicle battery sector, including the ability to mass-produce battery cells.

The EU’s Battery Action Plan aims to help European industry become a world leader in battery tech

Following up on the EU Batteries Alliance launched in October 2017 by Maroš Šefčovic, EU Commission Vice-President in charge of the Energy Union, the Battery Action Plan sets out a number of EU measures which can help nations and the European industry at large become a world leader in battery technology.

These plans aim to set up investment in research and innovation for electro-mobility and stationary applications including the use of EU financing mechanisms. These would be used to support scaled European battery cell manufacturing and a full competitive value chain in Europe.

The measures also include a focus on securing access to raw materials from resource-rich countries outside the EU and to reduce dependency on critical raw materials.

Other measures include developing the necessary skills for the new manufacturing processes and emerging technologies and putting in place a supportive EU regulatory framework including the reinforcement of the collection and recycling schemes in the Batteries Directive.

In a Q&A statement, the EU said: “Our proposals aim to ensure that Europe remains at the forefront of technological innovations in mobility, particularly vehicle automation, connectivity and batteries development. EU manufacturers and suppliers will strengthen their global technological and innovative leadership position. This will keep jobs in the EU and create new opportunities. The Commission will support the acquisition of new skills and assess options to manage the social transition to automation in the road sector.”

The plans form part of the so-called third mobility package that also includes plans to mandate new vehicle safety technology and set a new EU target to halve road deaths.

Vice-President responsible for Energy Union, Maroš Šefčovič said: “Mobility is crossing a new technological frontier. With this final set of proposals under the Energy Union, we help our industry stay ahead of the curve. By producing key technological solutions at scale, including sustainable batteries, and deploying key infrastructure, we will also get closer to a triple zero: emissions, congestion and accidents.”